The present invention relates to a roof ridge vent that provides pathways for the circulation of air from an attic area underlying a roof structure to the ambient atmosphere above the roof structure.
It is useful, and in many locales a building code requirement, that the attic area of a building be provided with a means to permit air exchange. Such ventilation prevents undue heat buildup, which can render the living quarters of the building uncomfortable and impose unreasonable energy requirements for cooling. Proper ventilation of the attic area also tends to preserve the structural integrity of the roof and roof coverings. One method of venting the roof structure consists of applying a venting media over an elongate slot present along the ridge of a roof. These types of vents are known as ridge vents.
Examples of ridge vents are provided by U.S. Pat. Nos.: 5,960,595 issued to McCorsley et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,298,613 issued to Coulton et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,308,472 issued to Coulton et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,902,432 issued to Coulton et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,521 issued to Coulton et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,942,699 issued to Spinelli. The above referenced patents are owned, or co-owned, by Benjamin Obdyke, Inc., the assignee of the present application.
Cap shingles or like exterior building materials are installed over a ridge vent after the ridge vent is secured to the roof ridge. The cap shingles provide a water resistant covering and are selected such that they provide the roof with a desired exterior finished appearance. Typically, cap shingles are selected to that they match the appearance (ie., color, texture, etc.) of the surrounding roofing shingles applied to the remaining sloped portions of the roof. Thus, the vented roof ridge structure blends into the surrounding sloped portions of the roof providing an aesthetically acceptable appearance.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,676,597 issued to Bettoli et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,125,602 issued to Freiborg et al., and U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,418,692 B1 and 6,530,189 B2 issued to Freshwater et al. disclose composite ridge shingles and sectional ridge vents. The shingles are constructed, for instance, of conventional asphalt compositions, and the sectional vents are provided as a mat of fibers or a pattern of walls that form ventilation channels. Thus, the installation of each shingle also simultaneously accomplishes the installation of a portion of a ridge vent structure. A plurality of the composite shingles/sectional vents are installed in overlapping fashion along the length of the roof ridge to complete the installation of both the sectional ridge vent and ridge cap shingle installation.
While the roof ridge vents disclosed in the above referenced patents may function in an acceptable manner, there continues to be a need for alternatives with respect to the design, materials and manufacturing of roof ridge vent products. To this end, a desired vent should permit the construction of a vented roof ridge structure having an aesthetically-pleasing finish appearance and should permit improvements with respect to the ease of installation and time required to apply a roof ridge covering. The vents should permit a sufficient amount of ventilating air flow without compromising weather infiltration resistance and should be capable of being properly installed in a manner requiring labor skills possessed by the average roof installer. In addition, the vent should be capable of efficient manufacture from inexpensive materials and should be capable of efficient storage, shipping and handling.